


Little Spark

by Neva_Borne



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Adorable, Awkward Zuko, Azula mention, Bending, Blue fire - Freeform, Children, Cute, F/M, Firebending, First Bending, Fluff, Fluff prompt, One Shot, Steam Babies - Freeform, Toddler, Tumblr Prompt, Zutara, Zutara Prompt, little spark, prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-02
Updated: 2020-09-02
Packaged: 2021-03-06 20:40:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,345
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26255053
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Neva_Borne/pseuds/Neva_Borne
Summary: Izumi starts firebending for the first time. She wields blue fire. She is upset because she wanted to be a waterbender like her mama. Zuko is worried because he remembers Azula's blue fire. Katara reassures them both.
Relationships: Katara & Zuko (Avatar), Katara/Zuko (Avatar)
Comments: 7
Kudos: 183
Collections: Zutara One Shots





	Little Spark

Izumi looked a lot like her father. She had slanted, golden eyes that were always bright and inquisitive, and her hair was long, straight, and sleek, shimmering in the light whenever she moved. Her hair wasn’t  _ quite  _ pure black, and her skin was just a shade darker than Zuko’s pale complexion, but she looked almost completely Fire Nation. Only her slightly wider nose and rounder face hinted that she might have a Water Tribe mother.

It was because she looked so much like her father that she so desperately tried to be exactly like her mother. She loved her father very much, of course, which was made clear to anyone who saw them interact at all, but she idolized her mother.

She wanted to be a waterbender.

She was five when she first discovered her bending. After spending weeks out in the gardens by the turtleduck pond - supervised by her tutor, of course - she finally managed to produce a thin stream of blue from her hand. 

The heat of the flame took her by surprise and with it came the realization that she wasn’t a waterbender. 

She started crying uncontrollably.

\---

Katara was trying to coax their youngest daughter, three-month-old baby Kya, to sleep when Zuko entered the room.

“Izumi’s started bending.” He said, and he looked slightly panicked. 

He was holding four-year-old Lu Ten’s hand. Their son’s other hand was stuffed in his mouth, drool dribbling down his fingers and soaking into the sleeve of his robe, blue eyes wide as he stared up at his mother.

Katara felt her stomach flip in excitement. She knew how all three of them had been waiting for this day, knew how hard Izumi had tried to get her bending to work. Zuko had been particularly anxious, since Fire Lords historically had all been firebenders and he was worried about his succession. Katara knew that Izumi wanted to be a waterbender, though, and she wondered what would happen if she was, or what would happen if none of their children were firebenders, as unlikely as that would be.

The Fire Sages had told them, when they got engaged, that because they were both Masters of their respective elements - prodigies, really - that the spirits would almost certainly bless them with at least one child of each bending discipline. One would not be more likely than the other. A nonbender child would be extremely unlikely.

Still, waiting so many years to find out had been difficult on them both.

\---

They left Lu Ten and Kya in the capable hands of their respective tutor and nanny and made their way swiftly through the palace to the gardens, where Izumi had spent the last few weeks practicing. 

Katara was horrified to see her daughter sobbing, head between her knees, on the shore of the turtleduck pond. Her daughter’s tutor, an elderly woman named Shiya, looked distraught, and relief flooded her features at the appearance of the Fire Lord and Fire Lady.

“Your Majesties,” she said, inclining her head respectfully. “Thank the spirits. I’ve been unable to get her to stop crying since it happened! She isn’t hurt - I checked her over of course. It was a very impressive flame for her first try! Blue as the sky!”

Katara felt a mixture of emotions at the realization that their firstborn was definitively a firebender. She was relieved, for Zuko’s sake and the sake of Izumi’s position as Crown Princess, but she was also disappointed - both for herself and for Izumi. She knew how badly her daughter had wanted to be a waterbender, and she’d be lying if she hadn’t hoped for a waterbender as well. But even as an infant, Izumi’s eyes had seemed to glow like Zuko’s did. It was what had prompted Katara’s nickname for her eldest: Little Spark.

She was also proud, because she knew that Izumi would be a powerful bender and an excellent Fire Lord since, even at only five years old, she loved sitting in on her father’s political meetings. 

“Blue?” Zuko’s choked voice came from beside her. “You said the fire was  _ blue?”  _

“Yes, my Lord. A beautiful shade of blue.”

Katara rested a hand on Zuko’s arm as she felt him tense beside her. 

“Thank you, Shiya.” She said, smiling at the woman. “I believe Izumi needs a break from the rest of her studies for the day. We will handle it from here.”

Shiya nodded and retreated from the gardens, headed back up to the palace.

Zuko turned to her, his eyes full of conflicting emotions. “Blue fire? Katara… I… that can’t be good. Azula was-”

Katara smiled softly at him and slid her hand down to intertwine their fingers. “Zuko. Izumi isn’t your sister. It just means that she’s going to be a prodigy. Like you. Like Azula. It doesn’t mean she’s anything else like her.”

“But-”

“You aren’t your father, Zuko. What happened to Azula happened because of Ozai, and not because she had blue fire.” 

Zuko swallowed and glanced over at their daughter, who was still crying and had yet to realize they were nearby. “She wanted to be a waterbender, but I… I prayed to Agni that she would be a firebender, so she could take the throne when she’s older. I… I feel like this is my fault.”

Katara shook her head and squeezed his hand. “I know. And she’s disappointed. But she’ll be okay. When she starts learning proper bending, she’ll forget she ever wanted to be a waterbender.”

With that, they moved towards their daughter, sitting on either side of her as Katara pulled the tearful girl into her arms.

“Hush now, Little Spark,” she said, stroking Izumi’s hair as she felt the small arms wrap around her and small fists clench at her robes. 

“I w-wanted t-to be like you!” Izumi hiccupped, her words muffled because her mouth was pressed up against the folds of Katara’s robes. “I wanted to waterbend!”

Katara rubbed her back soothingly. “I know, sweetie. But you know what? I think firebending is  _ really cool.”  _

Izumi’s sobs paused, and the little girl raised her head, amber eyes still full of tears, to look at her mother. “Really?”

Katara nodded, flashing a smile at Zuko. “Really. And you know what being a firebender means for you?”

She shook her head, and Katara raised her hand to wipe the wetness from her cheeks. 

“It means you get to be Fire Lord one day.”

“Like Daddy?”

Katara smiled. “Yes, just like Daddy.”

Her face fell. “But I wanna be like  _ you.”  _

“Hmm.” Katara considered for a moment, stroking Izumi’s hair. “You like helping people, right?”

Izumi nodded.

“And you love your little brother and sister, and Uncle Sokka and Grandpa Hakoda?”

She nodded again.

“And you’re going to work really hard to be the best bender you can be?”

Izumi hesitated, still unsure of her destiny as a firebender, but then nodded.

“Then you’re more like me than you think.” 

“Really?” Izumi’s eyes brightened.

“Really.” Katara grinned, glancing up to see Zuko smiling that soft, wonderful smile of his. “Now, can I see you firebend?”

Izumi hesitated for only a second before jumping out of Katara and Zuko’s arms and standing up. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and slid into a stance that definitely looked more like a waterbending form than a firebending one. Then she shifted her weight forward and a bright flash of blue flame spouted from her fist.

As Katara and Zuko cheered and congratulated her on the beautiful display, Izumi started laughing, stomping around before the pond as she further explored her talent for creating fire.

Katara felt Zuko slip his arm around her as they watched their daughter.

“You’re right. She’s nothing like Azula.” He murmured.

She leaned her head into his shoulder and wrapped her own arm around his waist in turn, sighing contentedly. “I’m always right.”

Zuko chuckled and kissed the top of her head, and they just stood there as their little girl, their Little Spark, sent her beautiful blue flames into the air.

**Author's Note:**

> Lovely prompt! Thanks so much for suggesting it!
> 
> Arguably in the same universe as "Time for Bed"
> 
> I have really enjoyed writing the last two prompts about Steam Babies, and I liked being able to flesh Izumi out a little bit more in this one. I really have no idea how five-year-olds act, so maybe this is wildly inaccurate. I dunno.
> 
> Thanks for reading!


End file.
